July 13th 2007
Emperors and Rockhoppers Getting Attention in DC
Filed under: 'toons, animals, campaigns, politics, web — kasha @ 9:43 am
From March of the Penguins summer 2005 to last month’s Surf’s Up, birds in tuxedos have been pairing off, piling on and poking fun – anything to get America’s attention. All of this celluloid hullabaloo may actually result in some hard-hitting political action.
Wednesday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that it will consider 10 of the total 17 penguin species for special protection under the Endangered Species Act, including the emperor and southern and northern rockhoppers. A petition from the non-profit Center for Biological Diversity compelled the Service to review the status of the penguins from Antarctica, Argentina, Chile, Namibia, New Zealand, Peru and South African. They are threatened by commercial fishing, habitat loss, contaminants and pollution.
You can comment on the review until September 11, 2007. Email thoughts and information to the Special Assistant to the Deputy Assistant Director of International Affairs.
Penguins at Surf’s Up official movie site are encouraging users to search the web at GoodSearch.com or to choose a charity at ChangingThePresent.org. To donate directly, please click here.
This is awesome. Finally, arctic species are beginning to get the attention they deserve, and hopefully some protection before they become extinct.
So sad to think that all future generations may know of these amazing species may be the movies made about them while we still had a chance to save them.